Monday, December 31, 2007

The Depth of God’s Love

God taking on human flesh on Christmas is called the Incarnation, and it is the greatest divine act since the Creation itself. The Incarnation resulted in a new creation for those who are in Christ, as we read in 2 Corinthians 5:17-18a:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ. NIV

By Jesus humbling himself and temporarily giving up his rights as God, we imperfect people benefit in that we become children of God. Let’s take a look at a particular passage in detail to try to understand how that works (1 John 4:8-12, NIV).

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

The author of the hymn “Love Came Down at Christmas” must have had this verse in mind. God is love, so when God came down at Christmas in the form of Jesus, perfect love came down to earth as well. When John wrote that “God is love,” he meant that love is God’s dominant attribute. However, God has other attributes that we mustn’t forget: God is just, God punishes the wicked, God is patient and longsuffering – but only up to a point. If we overemphasize the “love” attribute and forget the others, we make God out to be a softy and a pushover, and we devalue the meaning of the Cross.

Verse 9 tells how God demonstrated his love in a powerful way on that first Christmas:

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

In other words, God demonstrated his love by sending Jesus, so that we sinful and rebellious people might have eternal life. That’s what Christmas is all about – Jesus coming to earth from heaven, mainly for the purpose of giving us eternal life, as we read in the next verse.

Verse 10 explains what John meant by writing “that we might live” through Jesus:

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

The first part of verse 10 echoes what it says at the end of the confession part of our communion liturgy:

Hear the good news: Christ died for us while we were yet sinners; that proves God’s love toward us. In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven! (partially based on Romans 5:8)

Despite our continuously falling short, God forgives us time and time again when we come to him. I believe that is a good measure of God’s unfailing love for us. Of course God forgives us based on our relationship with Jesus and our accepting what Jesus did for us on the cross – that atoning sacrifice John mentions.

God loves us so much he gave us a way out of our dilemma, which is eternal separation from God because of our breaking of God’s law. Jesus did all the work – all we have to do is consciously accept the gift God offers us. Then we are made one of God’s own who will eventually go to heaven.

This is the reason I am talking about this – I want to make sure nobody misses out of the gift God is offering to us, which is eternal life with him in heaven. Especially this Christmas, why not accept God’s gift of eternal life?

The world thinks we get to heaven because we’re “good.” But we get to heaven on Christ’s merits, not our own – which is good since our own merits are rather puny and inadequate in comparison. It says in Isaiah 64:6: All our righteous acts are like filthy rags. NIV

But if we choose not to follow God’s way of Salvation – which is through Jesus Christ – then all bets are off. Personally, I don’t want to take the chance, and I don’t want you to take the chance. If you haven’t already, will you make the decision to follow Christ as your Lord and accept him as your Savior?

Then in verse 12, John continued with the thought that we are to love one another, because loving one another is an outworking of God’s love in us.

No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

God living in us refers to the indwelling Holy Spirit, who – if we let him – guides us into all righteousness and empowers us to love others in a Christ-like way. Is there someone this Christmas that you need to reconcile with?

What does all this have to do with Christmas? During this season, we should contemplate the meaning of God’s Incarnation and ponder God’s love for us. Maybe you don’t feel loved. Maybe you don’t feel lovable. Maybe you feel that nobody cares. Be assured that Someone does care, and loves you with an everlasting love.

That love is not dependent on performance, your outward appearance, your feelings, or anything else. God’s love is unconditional. You can’t earn God’s love – his love is there for you no matter what.

But until we receive the gift of Christ, we can’t take full advantage of all the benefits of God’s love. Think of the choices you have if somebody offers you a gift – you can either open it or you can ignore it. In either event, the gift is there for you – it’s up to you as to what you will do with it. Will you take that love gift that God is offering to you?

Jesus humbled himself for you – will you humble yourself before him and receive him as your Lord and your Savior? Christmas will be a lot more meaningful when you do. Because then you will have the most precious gift you could ever receive.